


Moonlight: Part III

by whiskeyandlonging



Series: Moonlight [3]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Baking, Fluff, Gen, mentions of needles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:22:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29469405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whiskeyandlonging/pseuds/whiskeyandlonging
Summary: Bones and the reader plan a surprise for sweet Luna.
Series: Moonlight [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1635322
Kudos: 2





	Moonlight: Part III

Luna was quiet, fidgeting anxiously, as they went through the same motions they’d gone through in the medbay for the past several days. Leonard glanced up at her and knew he needed to change tactics before her anxiety mounted too much. 

“So Luna, darlin’,” Leonard began as he swapped out the small vials in his hand. He’d learned that, when he drew her blood, Luna disliked the needle coming out almost as much as she disliked it going in. “I have a surprise for you back in the quarters,” he said brightly. 

Luna perked up at that. “What kinda s’prise?” 

Leonard chuckled. “Well if I tell you, it won’t be a surprise now, will it?” Luna pouted for just a moment before worrying her bottom lip anxiously between her teeth as her eyes flickered to her arm. “Look at me, kiddo,” he said gently. He waited until she looked up before trying to distract her once again. 

“I think it’s a surprise you’ll like. Y/N and I thought it would be fun to do something a little different today,” he told her as he deftly slid the needle from her arm and placed a bandage over the pinprick. 

When Luna gave no indication that she felt any discomfort, Leonard sighed inwardly with relief. He hated causing her any distress, no matter how important the reason for it might be. 

“Now can we go see the s’prise?” Luna asked, excitement coloring her tone now that there was no anxiety tempering her anticipation. 

Leonard chuckled. “Yes, darlin’, now we can go see the surprise,” he conceded. As they headed towards the medbay exit, Leonard dropped the blood samples off with Nurse Chapel with instructions to comm him as soon as her results were in. 

Luna reached up for his hand as they followed the winding corridor to the turbolift. Leonard failed to stifle a smile as she began swinging their joined hands until they reached the lift. Leonard bent down and lifted her into his arms, as had become their routine during these early mornings. Some days, Luna fell asleep before they had reached their floor. Other days, like today, she rested her head against his shoulder and hummed softly. 

Leonard never minded. 

By the time the pair had made their way to the door to the shared quarters, Luna was positively bouncing on her feet. Leonard smiled at her childlike curiosity and excitement; though she was warming up, Luna still had moments where her timidity and sadness surpassed her willingness to interact. He was always happy to see her moments of unadulterated, youthful joy. 

The door hissed open and Luna bounded inside. From her vantage point, she couldn’t see much, and she wandered around on tiptoes, trying to find any hint of the surprise she had been promised. 

Leonard relented, smiling. “C’mere kiddo,” he said as he motioned for her to come close so he could lift her in his arms again. He stood to his full height and took a few steps into the kitchenette, where various bowls and ingredients were carefully arranged on the countertop. 

“Know what all this is?” Leonard asked her as he arranged her more comfortably on his hip. She shook her head as her hand fisted in his shirt absentmindedly. “These are all the ingredients to make chocolate chip cookies,” he explained, a smile in his voice. 

Luna gasped as her eyes widened, and Leonard couldn’t help but laugh. “We’re making cookies?” 

“We are indeed,” Leonard confirmed as he set her down on the counter next to the ingredients. “Y/N got this all ready while we were in medbay.” 

“Y/N is really, _really_ nice,” Luna said sagely. Leonard stifled another laugh. 

“Yes, she is. Should we get started?” 

.  
.

Half an hour later, Luna’s smiling face was smeared with flour where she’d pushed strands of her long, blonde hair behind her ear. 

Leonard returned her smile as he set the timer for 8 minutes and turned on the oven light so Luna could see the cookies as they baked. He lifted her and placed her on the counter before pulling his sleeve over his thumb. 

“You’re a mess, kiddo,” he chuckled as he gently wiped the flour from her face with his sleeve while she giggled. “There we go. You can take a bath later, but I think this is good enough for now.” 

Luna hummed as she peered at the remnants of dough in the large bowl. She looked up at Leonard, eyes twinkling. “Can I try it?” 

Leonard paused, contemplating. On the one hand, he didn’t want to risk her getting sick. On the other, he knew that a small piece would be harmless. He sighed. He could never deny the child in front of him any happiness. 

“I guess so. A _small_ piece,” he emphasized as she reached in enthusiastically. 

Any ambivalence he felt melted away when she looked up at him happily. “That’s really yummy. You want some?” 

Leonard chuckled and shook his head. “No thank you, kiddo. I’m all set.” He brushed an errant strand of hair behind her ear and cupped the side of her face gently. His comm chirped and he flipped it open to check the message. His eyes skimmed the content and he smiled a bit as he read through the lab results Christine had sent over. He shut the comm and set it aside before turning back to Luna. 

“I think we should check on the cookies. What do you think?” he asked. Luna nodded enthusiastically and reached for him to help her down. As soon as her feet were back on the floor, she peered into the oven, her tongue peeking out between her lips as she concentrated. 

“Do they look done?” he asked as he glanced where the timer said there was less than a minute to go. 

“I dunno… I’ve never made cookies before,” Luna said seriously. 

“Well, if the chocolate is melted and the cookies look a little brown, then they’re done,” he hinted. 

Luna gasped. “They’re done, Bones!” She looked up at him expectantly. 

He waited for her to take a step back and opened the oven to reveal a tray of perfectly golden chocolate chip cookies. “Well look at that, kiddo, I think they’re perfect!” 

With Leonard’s help, Luna slid the cookies onto a cooling rack. Leonard set a few on a plate and poured two glasses of milk. He stood beside her perch on the counter and dunked his cookies while Luna ate them one by one and washed them down with her milk. 

“Would you like to watch a movie?” Leonard asked as he stacked their dishes. 

“Mhmm. Can we watch the one you and me and Y/N watched?” she asked. 

“We sure can,” he promised as he wiped his hands on a towel and let himself be guided into the common area. 

They settled side by side on the couch while Leonard started the vid. He rested his arm over the back of the couch and smiled softly down at the small child beside him. As she fidgeted with the blanket, he noticed she still wore the bandage from earlier. 

“Luna, sweetheart, would you like me to take that off?” he asked as he gestured to the bandage. She nodded and he carefully peeled it away and checked that her arm wasn’t bruising. “I have another surprise for you, darlin’.” 

Luna looked up at him questioningly. 

“We’re all done with going to medbay in the mornings.” 

She thought about this for a moment before looking up again hopefully. “No more pokes?” 

Leonard nodded. “No more pokes for now,” he promised warmly. “I know it was no fun. But you were so brave, kiddo. Now we know that your body is safe and healthy, and we don’t have to do it anymore.” 

She giggled happily before snuggling a bit closer into his side. Leonard leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head. He was becoming more fond of this sweet child every day. 

For a few minutes, the sound of the movie filled the room. Luna fidgeted with the blanket covering her lap as Leonard stole sideways glances to make sure she was alright. 

“Bones?” Luna’s quiet voice broke through the din. 

“Yeah, darlin’?” Leonard asked as he turned the sound down a bit. 

“Y/N is really, really nice.” She paused for a moment. “But… you’re really, really, _really_ nice.” She glanced up at him, a hint of nervousness in her eyes. 

Leonard smiled a smile that crinkled his eyes. He pressed another kiss to her forehead and wrapped his arm around her loosely. She snuggled closer into his side. 

Nothing else needed to be said.


End file.
